Sanitary device for telephone mouthpieces



July 28, 1942. w. D. FALTZ 2,291,030

SANITARY DEVICE FOR TELEPHONE MOUTHPIECES Filed June 6, 1940 ATTORNEY Patente'tl July 28, 1942 SANITARY DEVICE FOR TELEPHONE MOUTHPIECES William D. Faltz, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to Helen M. Greeley, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application June 6, 1940, Serial No. 339,041

3 Claims.

This invention relates to sanitary devices for use on the mouth-pieces of telephone sets, and more especially to such devices to be applied to the modern, so-called French-type telephone sets.

One of the primary objects of this invention is to provide a sanitary device for telephone mouth pieces which may be readily applied to the latter, without requiring any alterations thereto, or the use of special or complicated implements.

Another object of this invention is to provide such sanitary devices made of corrosion proof metal, such as stainless steel, special alloys of aluminum, etc., and having an absorbent filter and wick adapted to receive and store up a disinfecting solution.

A further object of this invention is to provide a sanitary device for telephone mouth pieces which improvesthe appearance of the telephone set to which it is applied and which, as ascertained by numerous tests, in no way interferes with the proper operation ofthe telephone mouth piece.

Still another object of this invention is the provision of such a device which is of light weight, simple of construction and assembly, and which can be manufactured at relatively low cost from sheet metal, by stamping and forming processes.

Additional features and advantages of this invention will appear in the course of the following description, considered in connection with the accompanying drawing forming part of this application.

In the drawing- Fig. 1 is a top plan view of my sanitary device, assembled.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken substantially on line 22, Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the so-called cup of the device, and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view thereof, taken substantially on line 4-4, Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 represents a top plan view of the snapring of the device, and

Fig. 6 is a sectional view thereof.

Fig. '7 is the top plan view of a protective disc which may be used in the device, if desired, to protect the textile filter thereof.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of Fig. '7.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary sectional view, on an enlarged scale, showing some structural modifications of the sanitary device.

Fig. 10 represents a side elevation of a modern,

so-called French-phone, partly in section to show the sanitary device applied thereto.

Referring .to the drawing, the sanitary device illustrated therein comprises a cup I, of annular shape, having a' flange 2' angularly disposed to rest on top of the telephone mouth piece, and an integral upwardly open annular channel or gutter 3 of substantially semi-circular shape, the inner edge 4 of which isset somewhat below the top of the flange. In this channel or gutter there is inserted an annular wick 5 of circular crosssection and. preferably made of absorbent textile material; Over the inner edge 4 of the gutter there is placed a larger disc 6 of absorbent cloth, such as medical gauze. This disc, or filter, is

held in place and stretched over the edge of the gutter by the insertion of the wick therein.

Inthe bottom of the gutter there are stamped apertures 1 through which any desired and suitable disinfecting liquid may beinjected in the wick, by means-oi a syringe, or an ordinary liquid dropper. These apertures are preferably made elongated and concentric with the cup, as shown, in order to aiTord better access to the wick, when impregnating same.

On the outer periphery of the gutter there are struck out three or more resilient lugs 8, preferably curved transversely and longitudinally, to increase their strength. These lugs fit closely and resiliently within the annular lip L of the cap C of the telephone mouth piece T, Fig. 10, and serve to hold the sanitary device securely, although removably, within the latter.

The absorbent wick 5 is held in place within the gutter and protected by means of the snapring 9 which fits closely within the outer wall of the gutter and which bears indirectly upon the inner edge t of the gutter, thus holding the filterdisc '5. in the taut condition imparted to it by the insertion of the close fitting wick in said gutter. If desired, the snap-ring may be provided with concentrically disposed apertures I0 which facilitate the evaporation of the disinfecting liquid and may also be considered ornamental. The inner edge of the snap-ring is, preferably, inwardly bevelled, as at H, to facilitate the insertion of a thin tool, or blade, by means of which the snap-ring may be pried loose from the cup, when it is desired to renew the wick and filter.

In the enlarged fragmentary Fig. 9, the sanitary device is shown provided with a protective disc [2 which, as shown in Fig. '7 may be finely perforated. The object of this disc is to protect the filter against damage caused by persons ab- Because of the greater amount of disinfecting matter stored in the core of this wick, it will be readily understood that its effectiveness will last considerably longer than that of a purely impregnated wick and, therefore, renewals will be greatly reduced.

The sanitary device, as above described, is so designed and proportioned as to be directly applicable to a type of telephone now widely in use. However, there are yet some other types of telephones in use provided with slightly different mouth pieces unsuited for the direct application of the sanitary device, as illustrated and described. In such cases a special and suitably dimensioned adapter made of sheet metal, preferably, is used, as suggested in dot and dash lines in Figs. 1 and 2.

As shown therein, the adapter I6 is provided with an inwardly flanged central aperture I! of suitable diameter to closely fit the above described sanitary device. The outer flange ll! of this adapter rests on top of the mouth-piece and is provided with any desired number of resilient, radial and hooked prongs I9 which are bent over to securely and resiliently engage the outer periphery of the mouth-piece. These adapters will, of course, vary with the types of telephones for which they are intended; however, whatever modification required will be readily understood and conceived by persons versed in mechanics.

The metal parts of this sanitary device being made of non-corroding materials may be considered as being practically everlasting. It becomes, however, necessary to periodically renew the textile filter and wick, because the disinfecting chemical loses its strength by evaporation, and also because of the gradual accumulation of dust, soot, etc., on the filter, especially.

To renew the filter and wick, one simply extracts the whole sanitary device from the telephone mouth piece and then removes the snapring 9 by means of a blade-like instrument in serted under the bevelled edge H of this ring. This gives access to the filter and wick which are discarded; the metal parts of the device are wiped clean and a new filter and wick are inserted. Then, the snap-ring is put back in place and the disinfecting liquid is injected into the wick by means of a syringe or dropper through the oblong opertures I at the bottom of the cup member. This done, the whole device is again placed in the mouth piece of the telephone, wherein it is removably held by its own snug fit and by the outward pressure exerted by the resilient lugs 8.

As will be understood, as suggested herein, there may be changes made in the construction and arrangement of the details of this invention without departing from the field and scope of the same, and it is intended to include all such variations, as fall within the scope of the appended claims, in this application in which the preferred forms only of the invention have been disclosed.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a sanitary device for a telephone mouthpiece, said device comprising a rigid annular container constructed to fit partly within said mouthpiece and having an outwardly open annular channel perforated at the bottom; an annular wick positioned in said channel; a circular fabric filter secured in the channel by said wick, and a ring-member constructed for snap engagement within the outer wall of said channel to hold said wick and filter in place.

2. As an article of manufacture, a sanitary device for a telephone mouthpiece, said device comprising a rigid annular container constructed to fit partly within said mouthpiece and having an outwardly open annular channel perforated at the bottom; an annular wick positioned in said channel; a circular fabric filter secured in the channel by said wick, a perforated ring-member constructed for snap engagement within the outer wall of said channel to hold said wick and filter therein, and a foraminous disc interposed between said ring-member and filter to protect same against injury.

3. As an article of manufacture, a sanitary device for a telephone mouthpiece, said device comprising a rigid annular container constructed for part insertion within said mouthpiece and having an outwardly open annular channel perforated at the bottom; spring-lugs struck from the outer wall of the channel to resiliently engage said mouthpiece; an annular wick positioned in said channel; a circular fabric filter secured in said channel by said wick, and a perforated ringmember constructed for snap engagement within the outer wall of said channel to hold said wick and filter in place, the inner rim of said ringmember being inwardly bevelled for the purpose set forth.

WILLIAM D. FALTZ. 

